After you lose someone close, dealing with the practicalities involved will be furthest from your mind but it is important to make sure certain tasks are done.
In Scotland a death must be registered within eight days of the date of death with the Registrar of Births, Deaths and Marriages. You can use the Registrar in any area but it is worth noting that some have an appointments system so you should ‘phone ahead.
You may not have to register the death yourself. There are others who can carry out this task such as any relative of the deceased, anyone who was present at the death or the deceased’s executor or other legal representative.
In order to register the death, you need to take the medical certificate produced by the doctor or hospital showing the cause of death
Other documents that it would be useful to take include the deceased’s birth certificate and marriage/civil partnership certificate, although these are not vital.
The information that the Registrar will want to know includes:
- The deceased’s full name, last address, occupation, date and place of birth
- Their status i.e. single, married, in a civil partnership, divorced, civil partnership dissolved or widowed
- The full name and occupation of any current and/or former wife, husband or civil partner
- The full names (including any maiden name) and occupations of the deceased’s parents
- The name and address of the deceased’s GP
- Whether the deceased received a state pension or other benefit
Don’t worry if you don’t have all of this information, the Registrar can still register the death.
Once the death is registered you will be given an abbreviated death certificate free of charge. This document excludes the cause of death, occupation and details of the deceased’s parents. You can request a copy of the full death certificate for a fee (currently £10) and it is advisable to have at least one full version of the death certificate.
The Registrar will give you a certificate of registration of death (Form 14) which you will have to give to the funeral director to allow the funeral to take place. Finally, you will also be given a social security death notification form (Form 334/SI) which you should complete to find out whether there are any benefits due to or from the deceased’s estate.
You can, of course, contact us direct if you need further advice or assistance, please contact a member of our Private Client team.
Article 2 - Organise the funeral
Article 3 - See a solicitor
